Viscoelastic properties of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: ex vivo biomechanical validation of in vivo MR elastography

Motivation: There are discrepancies in pancreatic MRE outcomes. Biomechanical validation of MRE in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) poses substantial challenges. Goal(s): This study aims to conduct biomechanical analysis on the surgically removed specimen and correlate this to preoperative MRE outcomes. Approach: Six PDAC patients underwent MRE prior to surgical intervention, resulting in shear wave speed (SWS) and phase angle (ф) for whole-tumor and tumor-center. Compression testing was performed on specimen at 5%-strain resulting in Young’s moduli (E). Correlation analysis was done with MRE outcomes and E. Results: Pearson’s correlation revealed a significant correlation between SWStumor-whole and E (r(6)=.857, p=.029) and фtumor-center (r(6)=.844, p=.035). Impact: Validation using ex vivo compression mechanical testing of pancreatic MRE outcomes gives more insight in the accuracy of the measured elastic properties in complex and inhomogeneous tumorous tissue, which is imperative for clinical application of MRE as a predictive biomarker.